Korrine writes:
Hello! I am hoping you and/or your readers can help my husband and I with our baby naming dilemma! This is our third baby, due in April, and our second daughter. We have a daughter named Claire Noelle and a son named Evan Andrew. My name is Korrine (Corinne, but spelled weird) and my husband is Andy. Our last name sounds like Hanley, but starts with an S.
With both of our other children, we were able to decide very quickly on names we both liked and that was it! This time, though, my husband has a few he likes that I have issues with or just don’t like and I have a number of names I really like that I think fit well with our other two as well as our last name but he hates them!
We (I) have a few requirements: 1) I don’t want it to end in an s sound because of our last name starting with s (which rules out Grace, one I really like) 2) for similar reasons, I don’t like anything that ends in -ley (so Molly and Carly are out, too) 3) I would like to use my mom’s middle name for this baby since I have my grandma’s middle name – it is Jean, making one syllable names awkward (I could be tempted to choose another middle name if the ‘right’ first name doesn’t go with Jean) 4) my name was/still is always mispronounced, so I prefer names that won’t be butchered too much, though I do like slightly less common names.
So here’s the list of the top picks so far:
Husband picks:
1) Ella – I don’t hate it, and it is a family name, but I feel like it’s too close to Evan
2) Emma – I actually love this name, but I think it’s too popular (I’m a teacher, so I always see the “popular” names from kids’ birth years in class when there are 3 or more of a certain name – Samuel and Taylor were very popular in 1999-2000!
3) Colette – I don’t dislike it, but I’m worried it will be too confusing with Claire and Korrine already in our family (bonus, it is French and I teach French, so I like that!)My picks:
1) Jillianne
2) Aubrey
3) Harper
4) Lorelei
5) Paige
6) Alayna
7) NorahAs you can see, we are all over the place. If I could find something I like as much as Emma and Grace, but which met my other naming requirements, I would be so happy! I like those two because they feel like they fit with Claire and Evan and I think they are classic and pretty and would grow with the baby.
Am I being too picky? Should I just go with Emma since it meets all the requirements other than popularity and we both love it? Would it be too weird to name her Emmalyn/Emmaline and call her Emma? Is Emma too close to Evan? Would naming her Gracie to avoid the s sound running into our last name be too nicknamey? Any help you could provide would be MUCH appreciated!
I don’t think it would be weird to name her an Emma name such as Emeline and then call her Emma—but I don’t think it would help very much, either, if you plan to always call her Emma. I think Evan and Emma are similar, but not so similar that I think they can’t be in the same sibling group. I think it would be charming to call her Emma Jean: this would set her apart from the other Emmas a little, and also make her name less similar to Evan’s. Claire, Evan, and Emma Jean.
Gracie does seem nicknamey to me, and I don’t think it helps very much: Grace St____y has a little issue with merging S-sounds, but Gracie St____y has a little issue with repeating end-sounds.
My first additional suggestion was Celeste, but then I realized the -ste runs right into the St- of the surname.
My second thought was Stella. It’s like Ella, but less like Evan. But since Ella is a family name, I’d be reluctant to change it. I would still suggest Stella in its own right, though: not as a family name, but just as a good choice with Claire and Evan. It strongly alliterates with the surname (Stella St_____y), which would be a plus for some and a minus for others.
I wonder if you’d like Annabel? The sound of it is similar to both Emma and Ella. Claire, Evan, and Annabel.
From your list my favorites for this sibling group are Norah/Nora and Aubrey. I think I’d like Audrey even better than Aubrey, because it feels more classic/traditional like Claire; Aubrey feels more like it fits with the Bree-/-bree names. If Jillianne were Jillian, that would be another favorite. More possibilities:
Charlotte Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Charlotte
Eliza Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Eliza
Elizabeth Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Elizabeth
Hope St____ly (similar to Grace; not great with Jean); Claire, Evan, and Hope
Juliette Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Juliette
Laurel Jean St___ly; Claire, Evan, and Laurel
Leah Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Leah
Lydia Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Lydia
Marissa Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Marissa
Sabrina Jean St____ly; Claire, Evan, and Sabrina
Because you both love Emma and popularity is the only issue, I’m a little torn. On one hand, I think the Top 10 is completely usable, and that it’s a mistake to dismiss great names just because a lot of people agree they’re great. On the other hand, the name Emma has been in the Top 10 for eleven years now, and it isn’t falling at all yet. I’m worried that I’ll put my “No, you should USE it!” vote behind it, and then you’ll regret it as the Emmas start hitting your classroom in full force. Still, it’s hard for me to resist the Emma Jean idea.
I like Emma. And I don’t hear it as often anymore…most of the Emmas I know are 7,8,9. Still, that leads me to believe it will have a dated feel to it,even though it’s a classic name. Emily, on the other hand, I love with your sibling names. It’s less similar to Evan, and goes great with Claire. Emily also had a heyday, but I know Emilys of all ages…from babies to old ladies, and it doesn’t sound dated or too common to my ear. I know it has the ”y” ending, but it sounds less singsongy than a 2-syllable ”y” name, like Ellie.
My own choices would be Katherine nickname Kate. I think it sounds so great with your other kids’ names, and is popular but not overly common. Claire and Katherine/Kate…love it. I also like Madelyn. You run the risk of Maddie, but I do know a couple Madelyns who go strictly by Madelyn. It’s such a pretty name, and has a similar feel to it as your other names.
Good luck!
I am with Swistle, if popularity is the only reason why you don’t want to choose Emma, then I’d maybe keep it on your list? I love the idea of using Emmaline/Emeline/Emmeline or even Emilia with nn Emma (although those names are rising on the popularity list) that way if after you name the babe you realize that Emma is too popular for your liking, you still have another yet similar sounding name to call her. What about Emme. (pronounced em or even em-me)?? Very similar feel but a bit less common? Or Esme?
If you like Colette but aren’t 100% in love, what about Cosette?
I love Juliette. Or Scarlett. What about Brigitte?
Good luck!
After I wrote my comment, I’m not 100% sold on Scarlett. Although I like the name and it fits with some of your other choices, I wonder if it is a little too harsh/feminist compared to Claire. I feel that any variations of Emmaline/Emilia/Emma, Juliette or Cosette do go well with Claire though.
And I also forgot to comment on Aubrey. I personally think Aubrey Jean is soo sweet. Aubrey and Claire. (although you didn’t mention what your husband thought of this name).
I agree with Swistle’s recommendation of Audrey. Audrey Jean St___y is just a gorgeous name. Your older two children have names that work very well as children and adults, and I think Audrey fits the bill too.
While Emma is a nice name, I agree that it is super popular lately, and not just with kids; I’ve met 3 dogs named Emma in the past 3 months! Your older two have such clear “human” names as well, that I don’t think names like Emma or Molly (cute names that are heard on both people and pets) would work.
Eliza is my favorite from Swistle’s suggestions. Claire and Eliza are perfect sister names. And it’s a different E sound than in Evan.
I may have the outlier response, but I think both Emma and Ella are too close in an overall way to Evan–they both start with the same soft “e” sound, (in stark contrast to Claire), and they’re both 4 letters, too. I’m also going to be an outlier on Emma Jean-too down home, not sophisticated enough with Claire & Evan. Colette is too similar to Korinne. If you go with Emmaline, you’ll have the pronunciation issues you’d rather avoid, and as Swistle says, why even go there if what you’d want out of it is Emma? I’d suggest Gemma as an alternative, were it not for Gemma Jean, which is just too silly….
Paige is too close to Claire in sound while being stylistically too different; Harper is very different stylistically ; and with Alayna you’ll run into spelling issues. Lorelei is an interesting choice–literate, classic, not overused. It might be my favorite from your list, though I’m also in broad agreement with Swistle about Nora(h) & Audrey & Jillian (but not Aubrey or Jillianne).
Of Swistle’s alternate suggestions, my favorite is Lydia, followed by Hope. Hope is so classic and unexpected. Maybe you could do something to embellish Jean such as would lead to Hope Jeannine?
My ideas, in no special order, are: Rose, Eloise, Margot, Suzanne and Hazel. Eloise I arrived at via Ella and via French, but it may have an ending that’s tricky with your surname.
Claire, Evan and Rose
Claire, Evan and Margot
Claire, Evan and Suzanne
Claire Evan and Hazel
Good luck!
Oh GEMMA!! I think it is perfect! Plus, you said if it were the perfect first name, you would consider a second middle name, you could always through in another name to separate Gemma and Jean.
I’d forgotten while writing that Swistle also suggested Annabel, which I’d second. Good idea!
How about Imogen (with a different middle)? I think it sounds like Emma Jean, but without all the Emma trendiness.
I know a most adorable little girl named Audrey Paige, which combines two of your names and would be great with Claire and Evan! Aubrey Paige is sweet too!
I personally think you should just go with Emma :) And I do not think it’s too close to Evan, nor do I think the popularity is that big of an issue if you love it so much. I also love Emmaline nn Emma.
If easy pronunciation/spelling is important to you, I would urge you not to use Jillianne or Alayna. Perhaps Julianne might work better? Or Julianna, or Juliette? (Love the French connections of Juliette!) Do you like Alana or Alyssa/Alissa?
A few others that might match you stylistically and that might go nicely with middle name Jean. I thought of some French ones since you liked the idea of a French name!
Cecile
Eloise
Mabel
Marlowe (I LOVE Marlowe Jean together!!)
Nicola/Nicolette
Isobel
Elise
Camille/Camilla
Chantel
Gabrielle
Mireille (actually don’t love it with Jean but what a great French name!)
Vivienne
Love Audrey. How about Tala? Could also be short for Natalia but I love it on its own.
I feel strongly that both Emma and Ella are way too close to Evan. Four letters, same starting vowel, etc. Stella is a great suggestion, or Ella as a middle name.
I agree that Ella and Emma are too close to Evan. Jillianne Jean is maybe too alliterative, and the spelling of Jillianne is a little confusing to me. Paige Jean sounds choppy because of the 1-syllable issue.
I like:
Aubrey Jean: Claire, Evan, Aubrey
Harper Jean: Claire, Evan, Harper
Norah Jean: Claire, Evan, Norah
Lydia Jean: Claire, Evan, Lydia
Laurel Jean: Claire, Evan, Lydia
Marissa Jean: Claire, Evan, Lydia
Nicola Jean: Claire, Evan, Nicola — Nicola is my sister’s name and we call her Nica (pronounced “NICK-uh-la” and “neeka”)
Gabrielle Jean (Gabi): Claire, Evan, Gabi
Gemma
Imogen
Other suggestions:
Aurora (Rory) Jean: Claire, Evan, Rory
Dominique Jean: Claire, Evan, Dominique (Nica could also work here as a nickname)
I LOVE Emma Jean. It really freshens up Emma (which is indeed pretty popular right now), and I love the vintage charm of Jean. I’m sold. :)
LOVE Norah Jean! they are all good names, but that is the one that stuck out to me and I like Claire, Evan & Norah together. I also love the suggestion of Emma Jean.
For Ella/Emma, I also dislike for many of the reasons already stated above. Too close to Evan, same soft E sound, four letters, etc.
I agree on Claire, Colette, & Korrine being a bit much.. and it doesn’t flow well length wise and stylistically with Evan & Claire.
When I hear “Gracie” all I think of is “Gracie Lou Freedbush and all she wants is world peace”
I am not a fan of alliteration so Jillianne Jean would be out for me.
Harper, Lorelei, Paige, and Alayna also do not seem to go well stylistically with Evan and Claire to me.
I think Aubrey is ok. Aubrey Jean S_anley. I like Norah without the h – Nora Jean S_anley
I had thought of Gemma as someone else mentioned.. but again I don’t think it fits style wise.
My new suggestions would be Fiona or Ada.
Fiona Jean S_anley
Ada Jean S_anley
Evan, Claire, & Fiona
Evan, Claire, & Ada
An alternative to Stella might be Estelle/Estella in order to get rid of the St- alliteration. I knew a woman from France named Estelle so maybe it is French?
Etta is similar to Ella/Emma but with a stronger sound to set it off from Evan a little bit.
Last, Ada (ay-duh), suggested above, or Adah (ah-duh) might fit your tastes.
Also, I should say that I love Colette and don’t think that Korrine, Claire and Colette are too confusing at all. Camille is in the same family of names in my head, too, and I don’t think that is too much, either.
For you, I love:
Anna Jean ‘Hanley’ (Claire, Evan and Anna)
Alice Jean ‘Hanley’ (Claire, Evan and Alice)
Emily Jean ‘Hanley’ (Claire, Evan and Emily)
Phoebe Jean ‘Hanley’ (Claire, Evan and Phoebe)
Maya Jean ‘Hanley’ (Claire, Evan and Maya)
Best of luck!
I like Emma Jean, Nora(h) Jean and Aubrey/Audrey Jean. I can’t decide if Jillian Jean is too much alliteration or a pleasing amount. (I tend to like alliteration.)
I think Emma’s a good choice for you, because you both really like it.
I don’t have a big issue with the popularity of Emma, but that’s a very personal thing. You are in a good position to think through whether that will bother you. I love the Emma Jean suggestion, it sounds a little Southern, and a little quirky and retro. It doesn’t sound down-home to me. I much prefer Elena to Alayna, and you can pronounce it the same. Has anyone suggested Juliet? What about Eleanora? It’s kind of a smoosh of Ella and Norah.
I know a lot of Emmas- I would go as far to say it’s the next “Sarah”. As in, I know a lot of 20 somethings named Emma, and I know it’s just gotten more popular throughout the 2000’s. It’s an awesome name but she runs the risk of being Emma S. If that’s something that’s going to annoy you it might be best to weigh other options. Otherwise, I think it’s a pretty name and would use it without hesitation.
I really like the name Colette. I don’t think it’s too confusing to have a Korinne, Claire and Colette in the same family. Having both of the girls start with “C” is a fun way to tie their names together. In the same vein, I saw someone else suggested Katherine/Kathryn (with the nickname Katie/Kate) and I think that’s a solid contender as well. I know a pair of elementary school aged sisters named Katie and Claire and it works so well (though I might be a bit biased on the Katie suggestion).
If I was going to suggest another name I would go for Arianna. I once knew a little girl with that name and it was so lovely on her. Arianna Jean S____ has a nice ring.
I also think Emma is a lovely name, but for a couple reasons wouldn’t use it.
1) I think Evan and Emma are too close in sound. They almost blend together and could be mistaken for each other when calling the children. Both soft vowels and starting with E. 2) It is very popular. I’m not sure what grade you teach, but I know Emmas from their 20’s on down and think you’ll start getting a huge burst of them soon. If you teach an older grade, you may not have started getting the “group of Emmas” and it may surprise you. 3) Please don’t call her Emma Jean. Naming her that as a first & middle is one thing, but using the double-barreled name as her first name does sound “down home country” and doesn’t fit with the simple elegance of your children’s names. That’s just my opinion though : )
I do know one Emmaline and really love her name. I would consider using this without Emma as a nickname. It won’t be AS popular as just Emma.
There are so many other great suggestions for you. I especially like Swistle’s suggestions of Leah, Lydia and Hope (my niece’s name – it is so darling on a little girl and wears well). I really also like Phoebe.
And I will add my own favorite: Genevieve. Claire, Evan and Genevieve.
I also wanted to add Elle. Like Ella, but just the one syllable Elle. This eliminates the problem of sounding too similar to Evan. It also has the same classic elegance as Claire & Evan, and will grow nicely with your daughter.
Claire, Evan and Elle.
I met a baby Emily recently, and her name felt fresh, classic & unexpected–similar to Claire. Is that too rhymey with your surname?
Would you consider Jean as the first name? Claire, Evan & Jean/ Claire, Evan & Jeannie/ Claire, Evan & Jeana?
Emma is a lovely name but it is a very popular one. Love the suggestion of Leah too.
What about combining the sounds of Jean/Emma with the name Jenna?
Claire, Evan and Jenna
Jenna Paige ‘Hanley’ is gorgeous!
All the best!
Love Emma Jean!
Another French name to consider is Elodie, from which you could use Elle or Ella as a nn.
The popularity of Emma doesn’t bother me, but I do think it is too close to Evan.
Since you have Collette & Ella, I wonder if you’d like Etta? Norah is lovely, but it is on the rise. I know a ton of Nora/Norahs all under kindergarten age. I suspect you might find yourself disappointed in a few years. What about Nell as a Norah/Ella combination? I also thought of Cora.
I like Paige from your list a lot, but the flow of Paige Jean isn’t ideal (not unusable, but not ideal). I also like Swistle’s suggestion of Audrey instead of Aubrey. Aubrey does feel very trendy to me.
You mentioned Molly was out because of the last name, I wonder if Amalia with Molly as an occasional nickname would work? Amelia would also be nice.
I think Grace St___ley is fine. The St sound is much easier to work with than a straight up S– to my ear the “Grace” part is easily distinguished from the St– so it doesn’t sound like “Gray St__ley” or “Grace Tanley”.
If you love Grace best, I think it is fine to use it. Grace Jean is OK to my ear too but I’m not that picky about middle names being perfect with the first. I know some people would find it choppy. I really think it is fine though. Gracie Jean would be a cute in-the-family nickname, too.
Among your other options– Emma and Ella are both awfully close to Evan, in a way that makes me think they’d best be nixed from the list.
Many of your other listed favorites seem a little bit of a stylistic mismatch with Claire and/or Evan. Jilliane would also be a pain to spell– same with Lorelei, Alayna, and Norah (though I guess Norah is easy enough if you just say, “with an H”). Harper and Aubrey are very trendy/will be dated in the future, I think, in a way Claire and Evan aren’t. Not that that really matters, but if you care about it, it’s a consideration.
Out of all your choices, and your own preferences, I’d pick Grace Jean, followed by Colette.
Some other names that came to mind:
Audrey (a little more staying power than Aubrey– but sing-songy with your surname)
Isabel
Dalia/Dahlia
Annabel
Helena (as an alternate to Alayna, with a more standard spelling)
Julia
Esme
Juliette
Elodie
Amelia
Alice
Good luck!
Eleanor would let you use both Ella and Norah as nicknames. Eleanor Jean is great!
Maybe you could compromise by making some of your choices simpler or more ‘classic’, so Aubrey becomes Audrey and Lorelei either Laurel or Lara. They seem to fit better with Claire and Evan too:
Claire, Evan and Audrey
Claire, Evan and Laurel
Claire, Evan and Lara
Amelia would make a nice combination of Ella, Emma and Alayna. Amelia Jean. Claire, Evan and Amelia.
Maybe Greta is similar enough to Grace? I mean, it’s obviously not THAT similar, but seems to have the contemporary classic feel you and your husband both seem to like. So maybe Maya fits that category too. Or Fiona? Or Stella? Or Ada?
I think Lydia Jean, nn Lydie is adorable and would go so well with the other names. It has a nice French sound to it as well.
I would avoid Emma or Ella – both seem very popular and too similar to Evan to me (both the soft e beginning and the fact that they are 4 letter, 2 syllable names). Also, Emma Jean sounds very country bumpkin to me.
I do like Collette Jean. I think the hard c/k is nice connection for the females in your family. Kor, Cl, and Co are different sounds at the beginning. I also really like Norah Jean with Claire and Evan
I love the suggestion of Eliza Jean (despite it’s beginning with an E the sound is different from Evan.) Claire, Evan, and Eliza. I also like the suggestion of Audrey Jean. Claire, Evan, and Audrey.
I do think the French connection would be rather nice for you. Have you considered any of the following?
Celine
Jolette
Lizette
Lyla
Noelle
Yvette
To me, nicknaming someone a popular name is no different then naming them that. If you use Emmaline and call her Emma, when she gets to Kindergarten if there are 2 other Emma’s in her class, it will still be difficult. The longer name won’t solve that.
I think Colette is nice. Or Aubrey, Audrey, Paige. I think you have a lot of good options…
I love Emma Jean. Or Eliza Jean. Or Elsa Jean.
Or Sonia Jean. Or Charlotte Jean (I know, you don’t want more C’s but it’s lovely). Or Julia Jean (JJ?) or Gemma Gene (as in Tierney, who played the title character in Laura) and you could nickname her GiGi.
Emma Jean! It’s perfect. Set down your pencils and walk away. Naming done!
Ooh! What about Cecilia Jean?
How about April? Goes nicely with Claire
Thank you, everybody, for all of your suggestions! We have quite the list of beautiful names now and appreciate all the suggestions. We still haven’t decided…I think we are going to wait to meet her before we do! Thanks again!